I know summing is very nerfed, but I like the idea ofit so I want to see if we can make something of it.
Looking at the Summon Fey list, I spot the Griggle for the fiddling, the Nixie for accessing any 1st level spell, and the Satyr as a pocket bard.
Unicorns have couple of 3rd level Heals for a 4th level spell,Dryads can spam 2cond level Entangles.
Is there anything of note on the other lists?
It all depends on the level of the summoning spell.
If it tries to Cast a Spell of equal or higher level than the spell that summoned it, it overpowers the summoning magic, causing its own spell to fail and the summon spell to end.
So whatever spell effect the creature can use, you have used a higher-level slot to bring it to the battlefield (and you have to sustain the spell every round as well).
I really liked summoning on PF1, but it was overpowered and a big part of the reasons spellcasters eclipsed non-spellcasting classes. Now summoning is more of a novelty or plot-centric tool. Cool, but not ridiculously overpowered.
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While animate dead is not strictly a summoning spell... it is basically a summoning spell. With that in mind, I am sure there are a variety of options there that could prove useful.
If nothing else, you could summon shadows since they are sturdy (20 resist when you have a good match up) and a decent debuff (enfeebled). Since I'm pretty sure you can flank with incorporeal creatures, this at least provided a sturdy option to give your melee characters tactical advantage.
While animate dead is not strictly a summoning spell... it is basically a summoning spell. With that in mind, I am sure there are a variety of options there that could prove useful.
If nothing else, you could summon shadows since they are sturdy (20 resist when you have a good match up) and a decent debuff (enfeebled). Since I'm pretty sure you can flank with incorporeal creatures, this at least provided a sturdy option to give your melee characters tactical advantage.
They have 5 Resist doubled to 10 vs. non-magical (which is many creatures). This is solid* against multiple low-level enemies (where the debuff is worth less), yet w/ their low h.p., Shadows are vulnerable to tougher enemies that'll crit and blow right through them (though perhaps after a more meaningful debuff).
*No pun intended.
While animate dead is not strictly a summoning spell... it is basically a summoning spell. With that in mind, I am sure there are a variety of options there that could prove useful.
If nothing else, you could summon shadows since they are sturdy (20 resist when you have a good match up) and a decent debuff (enfeebled). Since I'm pretty sure you can flank with incorporeal creatures, this at least provided a sturdy option to give your melee characters tactical advantage.
They have 5 Resist doubled to 10 vs. non-magical (which is many creatures). This is solid* against multiple low-level enemies (where the debuff is worth less), yet w/ their low h.p., Shadows are vulnerable to tougher enemies that'll crit and blow right through them (though perhaps after a more meaningful debuff).
*No pun intended.
10/20 resist from greater shadow. It is a fairly straight upgrade, since you get regular shadows with a 5th level spell, and greater with a 6th level spell (the monster level break downs can have weird gaps). It also has great debuffs.
If you want to be a good summoner at low levels, I'd say either starting as a witch or multiclassing into witch to get the Cackle focus spell would be a good idea, since a free action sustain once per combat can be helpful when you've got a summoned buddy.
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There are a couple of undead that can be made with a template, Grave Knight and Ghost Mage.
Obviously being able to make a character to order would be dope as hell, and thus
too good to be true good.
On the Summon Animals list, I notice swarms have resistance.
At least some of the constructs have Construct Armor, which seems really good.
Soulbound dolls summoned with a 4thlevel slot give access to Heroism and Heal.
Scarecrows have a big aura that induces fear.
The DC is rather low by the time you can summon them, but as a separate function it prevents creatures in it from reducing their Frightened status below 1.